Memphis Student Passes from Swine Flu
White Station Middle Student Passes from H1N!
Updated: Monday, 07 Sep 2009, 9:22 PM CDT
Published : Monday, 07 Sep 2009, 9:21 PM CDT
Lauren Lee
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The first Memphis Swine Flu death is a White Station Middle School student, says former classmates.
For the privacy of the family, FOX13 will not release the name of the young man who passed away. The health department says the child contracted the H1N1 virus last week and died Monday.
The death of the 8th grade boy is a shock to those in the White Station community.
“It’s just sad knowing one of our friends died,” says former classmate Skyler Summers. “And why?”
“I remember him being a great guy, he was a really good athlete, always in gym, always participating in all the activities that we did,” says former classmate Allan Williams. “He was a great guy.”
The former classmates of the student say he was very popular and a talented athlete. They say he was the star of the football team and the track team at White Station Middle School.
“He was on almost every team we had, he was really strong and everyone knew him as the athlete and its just weird that he got sick,” says former classmate Jessica Enrighce. “You would think he would be the one with a good immune system, not the one who got sick.”
The Health Department is investigating if any underlying health issues contributed to the child’s death.
The Health Department also says we are likely to see the H1N1 virus continue to spread in Shelby County. For students, the possibility of contracting the Swine Flu is a very real fear.
“A couple of our teachers just got over Swine Flu,” says former classmate Samantha Alexander. “They were the main ones talking about, wash your hands, keep clean.”
A spokesperson for Memphis City Schools has not returned our call for comment, but the school board President stated that schools will be open tomorrow.
http://www.myfoxmemphis.com/dpp/news/tennessee/090709_Memphis_Student_Passes_from_Swine_Flu
That is the part I don't get - it seems the very healthy and also the people with pre-existing health issues are at risk. I guess it's good to be somewhere in the middle.
Or, is it the type of treatment one gets and how soon you get to the Dr?